The Devil's Backbone
by neganised
Summary: With no supplies and the heat from the sun taking its toll, Alice collapses in a territory belonging to the leader of the Saviours. When she wakes up, she is forced to take him up on a deal that may be the most dangerous decision she has made in the post-apocalyptic world yet. Her journey is one of uncertainty as she steps into Negan's dominion as his newest Sanctuary worker.


The Devil's Backbone

 **1**

 **Barbed Bite**

* * *

 _Thud_. _Thud_. _Thud_.

The continuous rhythm pounded in Alice's ears, making it difficult to open her eyes long enough to see just where she was, and making it damn near impossible to hear the voices that echoed above her.

"Shit –" She mumbled breathlessly, regaining enough consciousness to move her legs against the hard concrete, realising then that this wasn't just a dream or a hallucination from dehydration. She really had collapsed, the Virginia heat taking its toll on her after-all.

"Woah, there." Feeling something hard press against her shoulder, Alice's stomach twisted at the unfamiliar voice that cut through the air like a knife. Forcing herself to look up through the too-bright glare of the sun, she lifted a hand above her furrowed brows and blinked at the stranger who towered over her. "I wouldn't even fuckin' attempt to stand up if I were you, that was some hit you took – thought you were dead for a second."

A deep and almost disturbing chuckle erupted from him then and Alice sighed, trying to sit up only to realise that she was pinned to the ground, the end of a baseball bat holding her down as if she were some animal he was keeping alive for entertainment. "Get the _fuck_ off of me." She snarled, swiping her palm against the weapon only to flinch as sharp metal snagged her skin, tearing when she yanked her fingers back instinctively.

"Well, that was really fucking dumb." The stranger announced, clicking his tongue against the back of his teeth. "First you collapse right outside of _my_ territory, then you go and grab Lucille like she doesn't have barbed wire wrapped around her. Fuck, you really do must have some sort of death wish."

The pressure of the bat pressing down on her shoulder gave way, and Alice grit her teeth together as she sat upright, holding her now bleeding palm against the front of her shirt. A pang of sickness built in the back of her throat, head still pounding and lips dry with the need for water as she glared up at the man who smirked down at her. It was the first real look she got of him since waking up, his head blocking out the sun as he swung the bat up and over his leather clad shoulder.

"Who are you, where am I?" She bit out, glancing around to see others standing by his side, all staring down at her. A chill ran down her spine, the feeling of being a fawn that had stumbled into the lion's den weighing down on her heavily. For months she had managed to avoid situations like these, but it was only a matter of time before her luck ran out.

"Who am _I_?" The stranger asked loudly, his smirk widening into a grin as he lifted both of his arms out by his sides, making a scene for his people and they laughed, giving him the reaction he so obviously wanted. "I'm Negan, and this is the Sanctuary. I'd give you a tour, but first I need to know who the fuck you are, so you got one minute to tell me how the hell you ended up out here all by your little self or you and Lucille here are gonna get to know each other real fucking well."

A breath hitched in Alice's throat as Negan manoeuvred the bat he called Lucille, playfully dangling it by his side. "I don't want a tour, I want to be on my way." She ground out, using her uninjured hand to brace her weight against the ground, standing up on shaky legs.

"Yeah, that ain't how shit works around here." He pinched the bridge of his nose with leather gloved fingers, sighing as he looked at the ground then back up at her again. "You're in my playpen now, that means you do what I say and what I want. I'm a real simple fucking man, sweetheart, don't make this shit any harder than it has to be. All I need to know is who you are, and where you came from. That was thirty seconds ago, you better start talkin'."

She wanted to run, but she was no idiot. The men with him had guns, lots of guns, she wouldn't make it one step without having a bullet blasted into the back of her skull. "Alice, my name is Alice. I've been moving from place to place for six months now, and I really couldn't give a shit about your _playpen_ or whatever you call this place. I don't want any trouble, I just want –"

Another wave of sickness twisted through her, and she closed her eyes briefly, trying her hardest not to gag as she composed herself and glared at him. "Do you have water?"

There was a pause, nothing but the warm breeze passing between them for a second as he smirked at her, a glint in his eye that she couldn't quite place. He creeped her out, and she wondered if this was it – if this was the part where he was about to make an example out of her and smash her skull in with that bat of his.

"See, now was that so fucking hard?" He raised his brow, grinning at her. "Water? Oh, we got plenty of that shit. Bottled, toilet, bath – you name it. There's so much water flowing in the Sanctuary that I could drown you in it, why – you want some?"

The sarcasm in his gritty voice made her skin itch, so much so that she wanted nothing more than to punch him in the teeth, because she knew by the look on his smug face that he wanted her to beg.

"I do." She stated.

"What do you think this is, Alice? A fucking charity, I don't give nobody shit who can't give me nothin' in return. Unless…" he shrugged, taking lazy steps in towards her until she could smell the leather on his skin. "…you're willing to make a deal with me."

Her heart thumped against her chest as she looked up at him, keeping her gaze locked on his dark eyes.

"You work for me, I'll take you inside and you can have as much water as you want on top of protection, food, a bed and even my dick inside of that mouth of yours if that's what you want." He chuckled, eyeing her over playfully before his smile faded into a hard line. "If you don't, then I'll take _everything_ , from that shitty little bag you own to the clothes on your back and then you can go on your merry fucking way into the sunset."

"I don't have much of a choice here at all, do I?" She narrowed her eyes, knowing that if she refused his offer that really had no way out for her other than humiliation, that she would be as good as dead.

"Call it what you want, sweetheart, I'm giving you the opportunity of a fucking lifetime. So you got ten seconds to make up your fussy little mind or I'm gonna have Dwight over there strip you down and let you go. Ten, nine, eight –" He looked at her with determination, as if he knew she would cave to his terms. And she did. Of course she did.

"Fine, I'll work for you." _Whatever the fuck that meant_.

"That a girl." Sliding an arm around her waist, Negan tugged her into his side and led her through his group of men who parted like the red sea as he headed towards the steel gates of the camp he called The Sanctuary. "Welcome to the home of the Saviours, man are we gonna have some _fucking_ **fun**."

* * *

A/N: _Thank you for taking the time to read the first chapter of this story, depending on the reaction it receives from you (the readers) I'll decide whether to add an additional chapter. I do not own The Walking Dead or Negan, Alice is an original character of mine that I've developed for the purpose of this story. I hope you enjoyed this piece as much as I enjoyed writing it._


End file.
